1. Field of the invention
The present invention concerns fishing reels of the type with a fixed spool and a rotary line recovery device.
2. Description of the prior art
In a fishing reel of this kind, during line recovery, the spool is prevented from rotating on the main spindle of the reel and a line recovery device including a rotary drum and a bail arm is rotated about the main spindle of the reel by operating a crank handle. The reel frame carries the crank handle and the main spindle of the reel.
The reels usually employed generally comprise a disengageable non-return device which, in a normal position of use, allows rotation of the drum in a line recovery direction and prevents rotation of the drum in the opposite direction. In a disengaged position the device allows the drum to rotate freely in both directions.
Document GB-A-2 258 595 describes one prior art device implementing a disengageable non-return function. This device comprises 15 teeth on the line recovery drum and a single-tooth pawl pivoting about an offset spindle attached to the reel frame. The pawl pivots between a locked position in which it engages the teeth on the drum to prevent it rotating and a released position in which it is moved away from the teeth on the drum to allow it to rotate of that reference. Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a rigid lever pivots about the main spindle of the reel frame and is friction driven by the drum which causes it to pivot in one direction or the other, depending on the direction in which the drum itself is rotating, to move it to a first position or to a second position. The lever bears on the pawl, on the opposite side from the part of the pawl which engages with the teeth on the drum, to pivot it between its locked position and its released position against a return spring. The pawl is in the locked position when the lever is in a first extreme position and the pawl is in the released position when the lever is in a second extreme position.
In the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 of document GB-A-2 258 595, the rigid lever is replaced by a spring the end of which engages the pawl on the opposite side to its rotation axis.
FIGS. 2 and 3 appended to this description show another prior art device of a similar kind in which the drum has 20 interior teeth and which also includes a single-tooth pawl and a rigid lever friction driven by the drum. The lever engages with the pawl near the part of the pawl which engages with the teeth on the drum. A two-position adjustable abutment is provided. In its first position it allows the lever to pivot freely between its first and second extreme positions, to implement the non-return function. In its second position it holds the lever in its second extreme position to disengage the non-return device.
In these prior art fishing reels the teeth on the drum comprise at most approximately 20 teeth equiangularly distributed around the inside face of the peripheral wall of the drum. Non-return locking of the drum is effective after the drum has rotated approximately 10.degree..
Accordingly, the non-return function is not instantaneous, and is effective only after a non-negligible rotation of the drum.
The problem to which the present invention is addressed is that of designing an improvement to disengageable non-return devices which, without increasing the cost, reduces and renders virtually imperceptible the reverse direction rotation of the drum needed to obtain non-return locking.